Reassurance (PMD)
by XRandomRpGuyX
Summary: It's a dark and stormy night. Samson (Hero) and Luc (Partner) are asleep in Sharpedo Bluff, until one of them wakes from something unpleasant. [Fluff, general sappy Mystery Dungeon stuff. Purely feel good stuff, felt good to write. Enjoy!]


_**Reassurance**_

**-X-**

"Sam…"

The duo's little nest in the Sharpedo's Maw overlooking the sea seemed colder tonight, Luc (A male Riolu) prodded up to one sleeping Croconaw (Samson).

"Samson, wake up…"

Samson turned over sleepily and rubbed his eyes.

"Mmnh… Luc?" He was greeted with a tight hug from his partner. Getting his bearings once more, a storm was raging outside with heavy winds and lightning flashing every few minutes. Luc shivered and hugged tighter, prompting Samson to hug back.

"Hey, it's just a storm… nothing to be afraid of."

"It's-" Luc sniffled and caught his breath again. "It's not the storm…"

Sam nosed his head gently. "Nightmare again…?"

The slow and resigned head nod from the Riolu was all he needed. Samson helped him up on his bed and curled around him some.

"Ah… I'm sorry Luc."

The two hugged tightly, Luc's breathing getting heavier as it morphed into a silent sobbing. Sam rubbed his head worriedly.

"What was it this time…?"

Luc shook his head, unwilling to tell him.

"I-I dun wanna…"

Sam sat up, getting Luc up too.

"Luc…" Sam nosed his head in between them and sat face to face. "Talk to me."

Luc sniffled and wiped his eyes from their tears. He sighed as his gaze fell to the haystack.

"Well… W-when you disappeared… I was back at the guild, and I had to tell everyone you were gone, and we had a whole service for you and everything and…"

Samson nodded, holding his paws reassuringly. "I remember, you told me…"

Luc could barely make eye contact with his partner anymore.

"*Sniff* After… after that… I waited… and waited… and waited. Days crawled by into weeks, and… then i-into months… and…"

The poor Riolu couldn't wipe his eyes anymore, only tears would continue to flood down.

"I just… stood there... stuck. Hoping that you'd come back… I couldn't do anything, I-I could barely eat, and… *Sniff* worst of all was when I woke up in the morning and… where you used to sleep… there was n... no one…"

About now, Luc gasped for breath between his heavy sobs, struggling to get out the words he needed.

"a-and every night a storm came in, I looked for you… instead of comfort, I only felt m-more hurt… because… you weren't there…"

Samson had to position Luc's snout up with both paws on the sides of his head, keeping steady eye contact.

"Luc… what happened in your dream? Tell me, please…"

Luc could only hold onto Samson's paws tight. Samson made sure Luc never averted his gaze, a bit forcefully but affectionately, just to keep Luc's racing and saddened mind on him. Luc caught his breath again and spoke tremblingly.

"I dreamt… *Hic* I dreamt that the storm had come in… And where you used to sleep, Bidoof was keeping me company… l-like he used to. Because sometimes I'd get so lonely, I-I just couldn't sleep… I woke up suddenly, and immediately rushed to your bed, but instead… i-it wasn't you…"

Luc broke away from Samson's gaze and grabbed onto the Croconaw with everything he had. His soft sobs had broken into full on crying now.

"It wasn't you! I just needed you there, but Bidoof said you weren't coming back, and… and all that hurt, and loneliness… it came back!"

Sam, seeing his partner so broken down, leaned back so the Riolu could lay on him as he bawled his heart out. Luc squeezed his partner with all the strength he could muster, which at that moment wasn't much.

"Sam, I-I don't want to hurt anymore! I can't… I can't take it, please don't leave me like that again!"

Luc looked back up to his partner's face, weepy eyed and broken. His cheeks were wet and stained with tears, and his eyes held naught but the heartbroken loneliness of a small and scared child.

"I… I-I don't think I could take it… *Hic* I-If you left again… I w… wouldn't make it… n-not again..."

Before Luc could mutter another word, Samson pulled him forward and stopped him.

"Luc…"

The two laid face to face at first, Luc burying his snout in Samson's shoulder and letting it all out. The poor Riolu shook and trembled with every gasp for breath. Samson let him stay there, while he spoke soothingly and consolingly to his partner.

"I'm so sorry Luc, and I wish I could have been here for you… Hearing you go through that makes me want to break down and cry too…"

Sam hugged him tighter, rubbing his head and neck affectionately. Luc, despite all his crying, could feel Samson's tears press against his fur.

"When… we had just defeated Dialga, and were heading back… There was so much I wanted to say to you, so much you needed to hear from me, but I barely had a minute to tell you anything, before I started to… disappear."

Luc still was full on crying, but hearing Sam's voice and words seemed to calm him down a bit, no longer trembling or shaking. Samson continued.

"I had so much to say… And I knew that leaving you behind would be extremely hard for me too… I'd grown to love our expeditions, our adventures, and everything else we did... As much as I was your support, you were mine. When we learned about Grovyle and who he was, and who I was… I could only think about you… Nothing could replace you, nothing could be what you are to me."

Samson's voice grew shaky, tremulous in tone. Luc took note, sniveling and hiccuping still, but he looked into Samson's now watery eyes.

"...You mean everything to me, Luc…"

Luc nodded and sniffed, with a little grin tugging at his maw.

"Oh Sam… you mean everything to me too… When you were gone, I… I felt like my world was gone… Sure we saved the world and time… but I lost the one thing I was fighting so hard to keep…"

The Croconaw nodded slowly.

"Me too…"

Samson sniffled once more, and nosed into Luc's cheek.

"Luc… I promise you until my dying breath… You won't ever lose me again."

Luc squeezes his partner once more and lets out a soft whine.

"Sam… do you mean that…?"

Samson lays himself next to Luc, the two side by side and face to face.

"I do… with every fiber of my being. I won't let myself be taken away from you… whenever you wake up in the morning… I'll be there. Whenever a storm sets in, I'll be here to comfort you… You don't ever have to worry about losing me."

He holds Luc a bit tighter as he speaks.

"Just… promise me one thing."

Luc nods, pressing his nose to Samson's.

"Anything…"

Samson buries his head across Luc's shoulder, squeezing and letting out a tender sob in return.

"...Don't leave me either… Hearing what you went through… I can barely stand to think about it… I'm not as strong as you, Luc… you've given me so much, and I don't even know how to begin to thank you for it, but… it won't mean a thing to me if you're not there."

Luc stops for a second, holding on tight to Samson in the hay bed. The two lay intertwined and held the other warmly. Luc sniffed once more and tilted Samson's head up this time.

"As long as I have you, Sam… I'll be ok. I'm always here for you."

Samson lifted his head back up, looking to Luc once more. His teary eyed smile matched his partners, the two sentimental and more than anything… happy.

"Thank you Luc. I'm so grateful to have you…"

Luc buried himself into Samson's slightly bigger body, enjoying his time as the storm raged outside.

"Me too Sam…"

He thought for a second, then planted a soft and meaningful kiss on the side of Samson's snout.

"I love you…"

Samson, caught a bit off guard by the display of affection, paused for a moment, before cupping Luc's cheek and planting a firmer but nonetheless definite and loving kiss on Luc's maw. It lasted not a few seconds, and ended with them touching noses.

"I love you too. And I will… always."

Luc almost looked to burst into tears again, but simply hugged Samson with all he had again, and sniffed once more.

"Thank you… Thank you so much Sam."

Samson snuggled into his partner and sighed with sappy sniffle.

"*Sniff* You're welcome Luc… Thank you too."

After that, no more words were exchanged. Only cuddles, firm snuggles, and the two fell right asleep in a matter of minutes. Samson held Luc's paw, Luc had his snout buried in Samson's shoulder, and the two slept in reassurance that the other would be right there in the morning.

As hard as the storm outside might've been raging… to them, it was _nothing at all._


End file.
